NXT Hero

I was pleased to learn that episodes of WWE NXT are now available on-line for free through IMDB in partnership with Hulu.  This is the WWE program where potential future Superstars get a chance to practice in the ring and see if they have what it takes. You will have to sit through a few commercials to watch these episodes but the wrestling is good so it’s totally worth it.

So now when I blog about great matches I’ve seen on NXT, you will easily be able to watch what I’m talking about.

In celebration of the new availability of NXT shows, here is a fun squash match from the 11/6/13 episode.  Luke Harper, the big goon from the Wyatt Family, beats the holy hell out of Kassius Ohno (AKA Chris Hero.) This match beings 28 minutes into the episode.

To psych us up for this, at 6 minutes into the show, the announcer says:  “He (Luke Harper) will be in action, pursuing his new plaything — Kassius Ohno,” (Wow, so gay.)

At first, Ohno comes out swinging because the Wyatt family had “injured” him in a prior battle and sidelined him for months.  But before long, Harper takes control and begins to just brutalize poor ragdoll Ohno, who is now portraying the Face-in-Peril (or perhaps a pathetic, worthless Jobber).  In fact, the great Chris Hero — reknowned internationally as a legend of Indy wrestling, a feared and respected grappler, and former dominant Bad-Ass on NXT — has indeed been reduced to a “plaything” for big ugly Harper.

Poor Ohno is whipped around by his long hair, choked and kicked, and tossed out of the ring.  Harper is in an especially hard-ass mood — it’s quite brutal.

Clad only in black trunks, Ohno is soon spreading his legs and showing us his balls — the sure sign of a suffering jobber beaten into submission.

This utterly humiliating whipping of our beloved Hero aired on November 6th.  On November 8th, an announcement was issued that he had been released by the WWE — no longer a part of NXT or any other WWE program.   🙁

It seems that when WWE is finished with a wrestler, they don’t simply ask him to clean out his locker.  No, they totally bury the fellow, force him to job to the lowliest Heels to humiliate him, and make him look like a complete puss.  This is similar to John Morrison’s desecration just before they fired him in 2011 — remember having those boners?

Firmly in control, the sadistic brute takes his sweet time dishing out the punishment — always a turn-on.  Ever the loyal worker, Ohno obediently eats the dirty bastard’s abuse, his arms limp at his sides as Harper repeatedly yanks the face of his “plaything” into towards the crotch of his jeans.

Back in July, rumors were floating around that Ohno was not working out hard enough —  not building his physique into the incredible shape required of top WWE Superstars — so they’ve now fired him.

But wait just a minute there, WWE.  What about Ohno’s opponent Luke Harper, wearing his wife-beater to cover up his unfit body?  And what about Bray Wyatt for that matter, or Brodus Clay, or other fat, fully clad wrestlers?  What kind of shape are they in??  At least Ohno had the body confidence to wrestle shirtless in trunks.

The rumor is that Triple H is pulling the strings, and he has a real hard-on for muscle and physiques.  Unless your ugly body is part of your Heel gimmick, you’d better be more shredded than cheese on a taco.

The commentators join in the emasculation of Chris Hero by repeatedly pointing out the one-sided dominance by Luke Harper:

“This is tough to watch… Luke Harper’s been in control since the outset. We’ve seen this all night — the toying and the taunting, not necessarily going for covers but just picking this man apart.”

“It’s like he’s just playing with him.”

I must say, there is something exciting in watching the great Chris Hero getting humbled — a man who earlier in his career wore an actual Superhero icon on his chest, a bad ass who we feared and respected.  Seeing our Hero suffer at the hands of a bumbling semi-imbecile, a redneck who really isn’t known for his athleticism or wrestling prowess, can be pretty intoxicating.

It’s like watching Superman getting whupped by a nerd — totally degrading and totally arousing.  Hero was once a “King of Wrestling” and now he is getting “played with” by creepy Harper!  The role reversal, the shift of power, the loss of masculine confidence and strength by the Super-Hero are what makes scenes like this exciting to behold.

There were many subtle clues during this encounter that signaled Hero was going to take a beating:

• Hero came to the ring shirtless and vulnerable, without his trademark Unabomber hoodie of power;
• Harper came to the ring alone, without his cruel brothers, as if he doesn’t even need their help;
• Hero got his hair yanked about 20 times & showed us his balls about 10 times, true signs of submissiveness;
• Hero delivered his trade-mark “Ohno Blade” elbow smash (formerly an Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile of wrestling attacks that nobody could survive), and Harper easily kicked out afterwards, nearly unaffected by Ohno’s impotent Blade.  Yeah, it’s probably time to get back to the Indies, Mr. Hero.

So if you want to watch a great wrestler being utterly degraded and shamed for like 20 minutes by an inferior wrestler, be sure check out this match.  And maybe we will not see Hero in future episodes of NXT, but at least we can enjoy this and other hot episodes of NXT for free on the IMDB site.  And keep your eyes on your local Indy federations if you want to meet Chris Hero up close and personal.  He is probably coming soon to a high school gym or VFW hall near you.  Great job, Hero!  Welcome back.

PS —  To end this article on a happy note, I found Hero’s first match after leaving the WWE at a small venue in New Jersey. He wrestles Shane Helms, another former WWE star who also once worked the super-hero gimmick (Helms is a big bad villain in black now).

You can see Hero come to the ring in gorgeous red, white, and blue trunks with “HERO” (not “Ohno”) proudly written on the back and a fancy ring jacket with his super-hero icon.  Hero plays the heroic shirtless Baby-Face in his return to the Indy scene, and the audience absolutely worships him.  You can tell Hero is elated to be back to wrestling the sorts of matches he loves with the freedom to express himself and amaze the audience.